Reasons Why Your Brake Pedal May Push All The Way To The Floor
When you push your brake pedal, you should be met with some resistance. This resistance helps to prevent the brake pedal from going all the way to the ground. But if something is wrong with your brake system and you are in need of brake repair, your pedal may go all the way to the floor. If this happens to you, you may wonder what is wrong and why this is happening. Here are three reasons why your brake pedal may push all the way to the floor.
Your Brake Fluid is Low
One of the reasons why your brake pedal may push all the way to the floor is because you are low on brake fluid. If your pedal pushes all the way to the floor, this should be the first thing that you check. If the fluid level is low, simply add more brake fluid. However, if the problem occurs again quickly and your fluid is once again low, you may have a brake fluid leak. Usually this is because the lines that carry brake fluid have a crack in them and need to be replaced.
You Have a Bad Power Brake Booster
Another one of the reasons why your brake pedal may push all the way to the floor is because your power brake booster is going bad. The power brake booster is responsible for amplifying power from the brake pedal. When you press the brake pedal, the amplification helps your car to come to a stop with less force. But when your power brake booster is going bad, it is unable to amplify the force you use, which causes you to have to apply more force to the brake pedal. As a result, you may have to push the pedal all the way down to come to a complete stop.
Your Master Cylinder is Going Bad
The last reason why you may find yourself pushing your brake pedal all the way to the ground is because the master cylinder is failing. The master cylinder compresses brake fluid, giving you the power you need to come to a stop. When the master cylinder is going bad, brake fluid may not get compressed. In turn, the time and power it takes to get your car to a complete stop increase. When this occurs, you may have to press on the brake pedal longer and harder, causing it to go all the way down to the floor board.
Your brake pedal should never push all the way to the floor. If it is pushing down to the floor, something is wrong with your brake system. As soon as you notice that the brake pedal is pushing all the way down, you will want to take your car to a brake repair shop to determine what is wrong and to have the needed repairs made. Visit a site like http://www.autoservicefairfax.com for more help.